Flashy OLED TVs hog the limelight in Vegas

CES 2008: Samsung, Sony throw weight behind next-gen tellies

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Samsung and Sony have both been showing off stunning new OLED TVs at this year's CES, making it clear that the hot new display technology is here to stay.

At 31 inches and 14 inches, Samsung's OLED TVs are considerably larger than the retail model displayed by Sony but, as they're still only prototypes, we don't know when we'll get our hands on them. For now, Samsung says it wants to develop the OLED technology further and reduce the cost of its displays, which is nice.

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Sony currently has the 11-inch Sony XEL-1 OLED model on sale, and another 27-inch OLED display in development. You'll have to save up though - the Sony XEL-1 costs $2,500, so you don't have to be a genius to work out that larger models are going to cost a lot more.

Both Samsung and Sony's models offer an amazing 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and slimline screens (less than 2cm, and 3mm respectively) with stunningly crisp colours. With such specifications, it's not hard to see why OLED is predicted to take over from LCD as the leading flat-panel technology before long.

However, there are problems attached to the new display technology as it stands now. The lifespan of an OLED display is only around three to four years. And it is difficult to develop models that are big enough to satisfy consumers' needs, according to Sharp and others. In other words, the OLED camp still has some work to do before we open our wallets.